Catholic schools from across our diocese gathered together for the diocesan schools Mass on Friday 11th October. Read Bishop David’s homily below:
At the beginning of our Mass together, we sang a familiar song about building a house. This is not a house made of bricks and concrete, glass and timber. It’s a different kind of house, made of love and prophetic words, hands which strengthen, serve and teach, a house where songs and visions are heard. And we all sang out, that all are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place. So what house is this, we were singing about? In a word, this is the house of Jesus.
Some of our school buildings are now reaching their sell-by-date. And we will have to think about how we are going to deal with this challenge. But in all the concern about our buildings, I wouldn’t want to lose sight of this truth, that within our school communities, we are invited to build the kingdom of heaven. And Jesus tells us in the sermon on the Mount, a house built on rock will endure. A house built on sand will not last.
This is what Pope Francis said a few years ago now, to a delegation from English-speaking Catholic Universities: ‘As educators, you are called to nurture the desire for truth, goodness and beauty that lies in the heart of each individual, so that all may learn how to love life and be open to the fullness of life…
Catholic education is also evangelisation: bearing witness to the joy of the Gospel and its power to renew our communities and provide hope and strength in facing wisely the challenges of the present time.’
It seems to me, these words are very appropriate for our diocese in these days. Our Catholic schools have so much to offer in what Pope Francis calls, ‘an age awash in information often transmitted without wisdom or critical sense.’ I want to share some words here to the adults amongst us, the teachers and schools staff, the Trust officers and directors and our school governors. I know from your school mission statements that in different ways, there is a buy in to what Pope Francis shared about the Church’s mission of education, from schools to universities.
And let me put things this way. When we think about our schools, it’s often easier to reflect on the bricks and mortar, the curricula and the systems and policies we need, than it is to imagine what a community of true evangelisation might look like.
Let me share with you, like you perhaps, I often find the words of our Holy Father somewhat challenging. The invitation to joy and a journey of discernment and commitment to a deeper discipleship, all of this can be difficult to engage with. But this is the implication of singing that song at the beginning of the Mass. And I would suggest, the only authentic way to understand the words, all are welcome. It is all too easy to diminish these words to a somewhat cheap and sentimental understanding of diversity and inclusion. And often in accordance with the agenda of our secular society rather than a diligent probing of the Gospel mandate we have just shared together: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations.
What makes it possible for us to welcome everyone in our schools, no matter what their creed or culture, is the truth which is articulated at the beginning of the Catechism: the beginning of the journey of faith in the desire for God. These are the words of the Catechism: the desire for God is written in the human heart, because we are created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw us to himself. Only in God will we find the truth and happiness we never stop searching for.
These words can seem so individualistic and singular. But they are far from a familiar parody of what belonging to the Church might look like. I love the fact that some hesitated to worship Jesus when he met them on that pre-arranged Galilean mountainside. We all have our frailties and weaknesses. But that didn’t stop the Lord sending out his disciples on mission. Our diocese is not Perfect. But that doesn’t mean we can ignore the common mission we have received from no less a one than the risen Lord himself. With Pope Francis a close second. And your bishop has made it quite clear since our Holy Father sent him to this diocese – it’s all about our common mission, and how we are all involved in this, especially our Catholic schools.
And so, as we come to the end of this little meditation on the opening song chosen for our celebration today, I want to return one more time to that intriguing and challenging line; all are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place. Thinking and praying for each one of our schools, all are invited to take their place within a diocesan vision of education within a missionary setting. To do anything else would be to lack the wisdom and critical sense which Pope Francis calls for.
At the end of the 1950s, no one in Rome expected much from little John XXIII. He was known as the caretaker pope. And yet, there were gasps of surprise when he announced the Second Vatican Council. This is how the Holy Spirit is manifested in the Church. And may there be gasps of surprise in our diocese as we open windows to let the Spirit in.
